#UAE markets track oil prices lower as geopolitical risks ease | Reuters

UAE markets track oil prices lower as geopolitical risks ease | Reuters

Stock markets in the United Arab Emirates closed lower on Friday in line with oil prices on signs the U.S. may engage in dialogue with Iran over its nuclear programme, reducing concerns of supply disruptions from a U.S. attack.

President Donald Trump said on Thursday he planned to speak with Iran, even as the U.S. dispatched another warship to the Middle East and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said the military would be ready to carry out whatever the president decided.

Oil prices - a key contributor to the Gulf's financial market - declined 1% to $70.04 a barrel by 1107 GMT.

Abu Dhabi's benchmark index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab declined 0.8%, dragged down by a 5.5% slide in UAE's third largest lender Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB.AD), opens new tab and a 1.6% fall in real estate giant Aldar Properties (ALDAR.AD), opens new tab.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank reported fourth-quarter net profit of AED 3.34 billion ($909.56 million) that fell short of market estimates of AED 3.55 billion with Q4 operating income falling 5% sequentially.

Separately, Abu Dhabi's newest sovereign wealth fund L'imad Holding is taking control of peer ADQ, the government media office said on Friday, a major consolidation that creates a new investment heavyweight in the wealthy emirate under its crown prince.

Dubai's main market (.DFMGI), opens new tab settled 0.7% lower, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties (EMAR.DU), opens new tab slipping 2% and Dubai Islamic Bank (DISB.DU), opens new tab decreasing 2.3%.

Dubai recorded 6.4% gains, its strongest monthly advance since July last year, while Abu Dhabi jumped 2.9% over the month, according to LSEG data.

#AbuDhabi folds assets worth $263bn into new wealth fund controlled by crown prince

Abu Dhabi folds assets worth $263bn into new wealth fund controlled by crown prince

Abu Dhabi has folded state holding vehicle ADQ into L’imad, a new sovereign wealth fund chaired by the emirate’s crown prince, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan. 

The consolidation of ADQ, which has $263bn in assets including major stakes in Abu Dhabi’s airline, ports and nuclear generation company, marks a generational shift of investment influence to the 44-year-old heir apparent, who is being groomed for power by his father, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed. 

“L’imad marks a new pillar in Abu Dhabi’s investment strategy — the time was right for the crown prince to control his own sovereign wealth fund,” said one senior investment banker. 

Abu Dhabi’s estimated $1.8tn in sovereign wealth, an increasingly important factor in global transactions, is expanding the emirate’s global influence, including a recent push into Africa. 

The merger “aims to create a sovereign investment powerhouse with a diversified asset base”, said a statement from the emirate’s supreme council for financial and economic affairs on Friday. The council oversees Abu Dhabi’s investment funds and oil company. 

Greater responsibility for Sheikh Khaled within the emirate’s investment framework through L’imad echoes the establishment of the $330bn sovereign fund Mubadala, which was formed in 2002 when Sheikh Mohammed was consolidating power under his father, Sheikh Zayed. 

L’imad, formed in late 2025, has already acquired Abu Dhabi’s CYVN automotive holdings, including McLaren and an 18 per cent stake in Chinese EV manufacturer Nio, as well as a vast property portfolio via Modon. 

Jassem al-Zaabi, the powerful head of the emirate’s department of finance, is chief executive of the new fund, which is also leading Abu Dhabi’s participation in the $108bn hostile bid for Warner Bros launched by David Ellison’s Paramount.  

Government-owned ADQ has formed a key aspect of the investment empire controlled by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, the UAE’s national security adviser. He also chairs the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, the emirate’s original $1.1tn sovereign wealth fund.   

Sheikh Tahnoon, whose influence spans security, diplomacy and investment strategy, controls extensive private assets, including the sprawling conglomerate IHC and tech-focused development arm, G42. 

The founding chief executive of ADQ, Mohamed al-Suwaidi, has shifted to become executive chair of asset manager Lunate, which has $115bn of assets under management within the business empire of Sheikh Tahnoon.